The Contra Costa Taxpayers Association is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to promoting accountable, cost-effective and efficient government and opposing unnecessary taxes and spending.

Welcome to The Taxpayer's Corner! For 80 years CoCoTax, the Contra Costa Taxpayers Association, has promoted "Good government at affordable cost." If you live, work or travel through our county, we work for you, the taxpayer!

Read our posts, and watch our upcoming videos for information on current issues and proposals that affect your wallet and your life-style. Leave a comment, and join our non-partisan efforts to protect taxpayers from unnecessary taxation.

Our mission statement is simple and straightforward: "Promote good government at affordable cost."

Here's what the first goal - "good government" means to the 400-strong membership of CoCoTax:

Public agencies conduct ALL business in open meetings at which members of the public are free to comment and criticize the agency's plans and actions. (Note: under the Ralph M. Brown Act which governs public meetings in California, there a very few exceptions for matters which may be conducted in closed session; see "The Brown Act" page here.)

The public is informed in advance of all meetings, and of all proposals to come before the agency.

Elected officials restrain the urge to go beyond their chartered responsibilities. For example, when a city council decides to declare their city a "nuclear-free" zone, while their streets are pocked with potholes, they're not doing their job.

Elected officials perform their sworn duties to the best of their abilities, and adhere to the ethical rules pertaining to their office. They put their constituents' needs ahead of their personal ambitions or any partisan objectives...they are true public servants first and foremost.

2017 Year-End CoCoTax Message

For taxpayer advocates, the year closes on a positive note at the national level. The president today signed the tax reform bill, radically reducing tax rates for businesses, lessening the burden for middle-class folks, and eliminating the most onerous of the ObamaCare elements - mandatory health insurance. To be sure, there is still an enormous amount of work to be done to fully restore the economy, reduce governmental red tape, and rebuild our international stature. But, the administration’s direction seems clear and determined. With Congress and the federal bureaucracy, however, the question remains: will concern for our citizens overcome partisanship?

For Californians, the overall prospects are not as positive. As was the case in 2016, we can expect a flood of new taxes and “fees” at every level of government. Virtually all municipalities that provide defined benefits for public workers face crippling unfunded pension and health care costs; there appears little real opportunity to avoid drastic cuts in services, and even bankruptcy. Our once-robust pubic infrastructure continues to deteriorate, and we seem unable to provide adequate water storage and wild-land management; dams crumble and fires rage out of control, as though in a Third World country. Our education system, once the finest in the nation, is now rated among the lowest, yet costs have soared as results have fallen. Elected leaders openly ignore the state and federal Constitutions and the Bill of Rights, and brazenly advance socialism.

Given this target-rich environment, I want to highlight several areas where we will concentrate our energy next year:

•Public employee pension and health care debt;

•Oversight of school bonds;

•Transportation and the infrastructure;

•A new East County chapter of CoCoTax under the leadership of Hal Bray, to mirror the well-attended West County chapter meetings led by Sue Pricco

•Defense of Prop 13 from assault by tax-and-spenders, and

•Preparation for the 2018 ballot cycle, where I expect we’ll see at least as many measures as we encountered last year (43 in our county).

Finally, I must note that aside from the myriad issues that affect taxpayers’ wallets, many are deeply disturbed at the collapse in respect for our traditional American values by so many of our leaders. Throughout our history, Americans have been known for honesty, personal integrity and a commitment to the common good. We at CoCoTax will continue to tell the truth, honor our word, and avoid demonizing those with whom we disagree.

Mauna and I wish all of you a very merry Christmas and the warmest of holidays, and look forward to joining you in promoting good government at affordable cost.

Jack Weir, President

A Handbook for How CoCoTax Does Business

CoCoTax has developed a handbook to help our members and others better understand how we operate. The handbook will also serve as a reference source for tools to evaluate tax and bond proposals, as well as the agencies that seek voter support for the measures they propose.

The impetus for the handbook began as a desire to help new and prospective members get up to speed quickly in the important work of Contra Costa Taxpayers Association. Beyond that, our goals included making more visible our focus on the “good government” side of our work.

The organization of the handbook is roughly: who we are, the principles of good taxation, what we believe as CoCoTax, how those beliefs are reflected in positions on important issues, criteria to evaluate taxes, bonds, and taxing authorities, templates to help do that, FAQ’s, and links to valuable information. An addendum offers advocacy tips and thoughts for CoCoTax internal projects.

We believe the handbook captures in a single document much of the good work that has been done by many individuals over several years. We also believe that it is not a document that is or will be finished, as it will no doubt prompt thinking that will continue to strengthen CoCoTax and its operation even further. For this reason, we invite and welcome your comments. Please send them toinfo@cocotax.org, and they will be reviewed for inclusion in periodic updates to the handbook and the templates.

Issue Updates

Who enjoys paying taxes? In the words of Benjamin Franklin, “…in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Sales tax, property tax, assessments, federal, state, special districts, cities, other local agencies – all add up. But what is reasonable? Where does your money go? For 80 years, the Contra Costa Taxpayers Association, also known as CoCoTax, has been studying, informing, educating and advocating for taxpayers on any matters concerning taxation in this county. With their focus on “good government at affordable cost” the non-partisan association is “dedicated to promoting accountable, cost-effective and efficient government and opposing unnecessary taxes and spending.”

Find Your California Representative

A lot of publicity has gone to CalPERS and its pitiful 1% rate of return. CCCERA is using a 7.75 expected rate of return when for 2011 it earned 2.7%, the 5 year average is only 2.4%, and the 10 year average is 6.2%. Retaining that 7.75% rate of return will push more expenses to the governments in CCCERA including the county and ConFire. That will mean dollars that would go to services will be directed to pension payment.

Contra Costa $100,000 Pension Club has 787 Members as of 7/1/2013. A 10% increase from 2012 numbers.